In the more than thirty years since its original publication, The American Supreme Court has introduced several generations of students to the workings of the highest court of the United States. Now Sanford Levinson brings this classic work up-to-date, ensuring its continued relevance for decades to come.

In this historical interpretation of the Supreme Court's role in constructing the United States Constitution, McCloskey contends that the strength of the Court has always been in its sensitivity to the changing political scene and in its reluctance to stray too far from the main currents of public sentiments. Because of the essential ambiguity of the Constitution, McCloskey argues, the Court has always been an active branch of government.

Leaving McCloskey's original text unchanged, Levinson has added two new chapters covering the developments of the past thirty years, a coda, a revised chronology, and a totally new bibliographic essay. Also included is a new preface by Daniel J. Boorstin.

1 The genesis and nature of judicial power 2 The establishment of the right to decide : 1789-1810 3 The Marshall Court and the shaping of the nation : 1810-1835 4 The court under Taney : the natural history of judicial prestige 5 Constitutional evolution in the Gilded Age : 1865-1900 6 The judiciary and the regulatory state : 1900-1937 7 The modern court and postwar America : 1937-1959 8 Civil liberties, civil rights, and the Supreme Court 9 Judicial monitoring of the new American welfare state Epilogue : the court of today and the lessons of history

In the more than thirty years since its original publication, The American Supreme Court has introduced several generations of students to the workings of the highest court of the United States. Now Sanford Levinson brings this classic work up-to-date, ensuring its continued relevance for decades to come.

In this historical interpretation of the Supreme Court's role in constructing the United States Constitution, McCloskey contends that the strength of the Court has always been in its sensitivity to the changing political scene and in its reluctance to stray too far from the main currents of public sentiments. Because of the essential ambiguity of the Constitution, McCloskey argues, the Court has always been an active branch of government.

Leaving McCloskey's original text unchanged, Levinson has added two new chapters covering the developments of the past thirty years, a coda, a revised chronology, and a totally new bibliographic essay. Also included is a new preface by Daniel J. Boorstin.

Table of Contents

1 The genesis and nature of judicial power 2 The establishment of the right to decide : 1789-1810 3 The Marshall Court and the shaping of the nation : 1810-1835 4 The court under Taney : the natural history of judicial prestige 5 Constitutional evolution in the Gilded Age : 1865-1900 6 The judiciary and the regulatory state : 1900-1937 7 The modern court and postwar America : 1937-1959 8 Civil liberties, civil rights, and the Supreme Court 9 Judicial monitoring of the new American welfare state Epilogue : the court of today and the lessons of history